After reports emerged last week that Warner Bros. Discovery has held meetings with WWE regarding the television rights to WWE Raw, the most obvious question for many was what would a potential deal between the two sides mean for All Elite Wrestling (AEW)?
Between the possibility that WWE would require exclusivity and the reality that Warner Bros. Discovery likely wouldn’t want to pay for two separate wrestling products — especially with an NBA rights deal also due — AEW would presumably be looking for a new television home for the first time since its inception in 2019.
Asked about the reports following the Ring of Honor Final Battle pay-per-view on Friday, AEW owner and president Tony Khan responded to reports, downplaying the notion of WBD’s wandering eye.
“Even in recent days, I’ve had really good talks with Warner Brothers Discovery. We’ve been with them for several years. It’s a really exciting time for AEW,” Khan said before touting AEW’s recent ratings and attendance accomplishments.
“We’ve performed incredibly well for Warner Bros. Discovery and we [have a] very, very strong relationship. I think with media rights and all the things coming up, everyone has to do their due diligence,” he continued. “It’s just part of the TV business. But I think where we stand, we stand in a position for AEW to have a huge growth year in 2024. There’s a lot of really exciting things happening that I know Warner Bros. is really excited about that we’ve talked about.”
Khan continued to list AEW’s successes in 2023, which included the addition of a third weekly television show, AEW Collison — a move that he said came at the urging of WBD. Despite TNT’s two-hour Saturday show struggling from a ratings standpoint against stiff competition throughout the fall, the 41-year-old Khan described Collision as “very successful.”
Still, the possibility of AEW — whose current deal with WBD expires at the end of 2024 — losing the only TV partner it’s ever known to its rival promotion looms. With WWE having also signed new rights deals with NBC Universal (SmackDown) and The CW (NXT), the prospect of the wrestling giant also having a deal with WBD would leave AEW with limited options moving forward.
Considering the impact that its next rights deal will have on its future, it’s hard to imagine AEW finding a better partner from both a financial and exposure standpoint than WBD. Yet despite WBD’s talks with WWE creating an undeniable level of uncertainty for his company, Khan remains confident, comparing the negotiations to what he’s experienced as an owner in the NFL and English Premier League.
“It’s a great relationship and it’s going very very well for us. And I think part of the TV business, for both sides, is doing their due diligence and that’s just a part of sports and television, really,” said Khan, whose family owns the Jacksonville Jaguars an Fulham F.C. “Being part of the NFL and the Premier League, I’ve seen that process play out with certainly with different TV networks looking at different sports and the sports themselves looking at different TV networks.”
